campjupiterfandomcom-20200213-history
Amor et Proelium
Fanfiction Story This is a crossover between Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl's Beautiful Creatures and Rick Riordan's The Heroes of Olympus. ---- Green eyes. That was what Ethan searched for as he ran through the burning fields- the glint of Genevieve's bright green eyes somewhere among the red and gold of the flames consuming his home. He had no doubt the entire place would be destroyed- he'd seen what the greeks had done to Columbia firsthand. General William T. Sherman, the famed son Ares, (the greek version of Ethan's own ancestor, Mars), had burned down the cities of the Confederacy with no mercy, murdering women and children, destroying homes and belongings of innocent people. He supposed the monster was technically his great-times-a-thousand-uncle - the thought made him sick. Ethan's family, the Wates, had been proud members of the Legion for generations. Their ancestry that linked them to the God of Rome went so far back he would doubt it even existed if not for the fact that he could touch imperial gold and drink nectar without disintegrating. His brothers Ellis and Lawson were prize fighters, everything a legion official, and a Confederate soldier, should be. But Ethan wanted no part in the war. He could not care less about the ultimately failed Confederacy, or the stupid Legion, or Robert Lee, the honorable son of Bellona that lead the army of fools marching against the union. They would all be dead soon, they stood no chance against the greeks. He'd seen the chance they stood, and he'd seen it burned down with everything else. So he left. He didn't care that his parents would disown him, that his brothers would shun him, that he'd be struck from the family tree and remembered only as a deserter. He only cared about getting back to Genevieve, warning her, saving her from the destruction of their home. But he was too late. His home, Gatlin, South Carolina, was up in flames by the time he got there. He could only hope they hadn't hit Genevieve's home, Greenbrier Plantation, yet. But then he smelt it- Burning lemons. Genevieve's mothers prize lemon trees, envied by every other woman in town, were burning to the ground. When his sight caught up to his smell he saw it wasn't only the trees, but the entire house as well. He searched desperately around the burning manor for the girl he loved. And finally he saw them- impossibly bright green eyes, connected to the most beautiful face in the south, belonging to the kindest, most wonderful person in the whole world. Genevieve Katherine Duchannes. His best friend, his true love, running blindly through the flames, toward her burning home. He ran over to her, and covered her mouth so that she wouldn't scream and attract the attention of the surrounding greek soldiers. "Genevieve, it's me." he assured her before removing his hand. "What are you doin' here? Are you all right?" she asked, embracing him. "I am, darlin'." He said. "I thought you might be..." Genevieve trailed off. "Where's the rest a your regiment?" "The last I saw, they were outside a Summit." "What do you mean, last you saw? Are they all dead?" "I don't know. When I left they were still alive." "I don't understand." Ethan had been dreading this part. "I deserted, Genevieve. I couldn't fight one more day for somethin' I didn't believe in. Not after what I've seen. Most a the boys fightin' with me didn' even realize what this war was about- that we were just spillin' our blood over cotton." He knew there was more to it than that, of course. A millennium old blood fued between Greece and Rome, for one thing. But Genevieve was a mortal, she couldn't know any of that. He took her hands. "I understand if you can't marry me now. I don't have any money and now I don't have any honor." "I don't care if you have any money, Ethan Carter Wate. You are the most honorable man I've ever known. And I don't care if my daddy thinks the differences are to great to overcome. your home now and we're gonna get married." Genevieve said. "We have to head for the river. That's where Mamma would go. she'd head south toward Aunt Julianne's place." Ethan started to answer, but cut off at the sound of breaking branches, footsteps, coming toward them. "Get behind me." Ethan said, grabbing his rifle. But when the brush cleared it was only an old woman, one Ethan recognized as the cook from Greenbrier. "Ivy, are you alright?" Genevieve asked, running toward her. "Miss Genevieve, what in the world are you doin' out here?" Ivy asked. "I was tryin' to get to Greenbrier. To warn y'all." "It's too late for that, child, and it wouldn't a done no good. Those blue birds broke down the doors and walked right into the house, like it was their own. They gave the place the once-over to see what they wanted to take, then they just started settin' fires. In all my life I've never seen the likes a devils like that. Burnin' a house with women in it. Every one a them will have to answer to God almighty himself in the hereafter." Genevieve looked at Ivy in confusion. "What do you mean, burnin' a house with women in it?" "I'm so sorry child." The fact dawned on Ethan moments before it did Genevieve. Then the girl fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face, making ruts in the ash. Her mother and sister were dead, and her home was destroyed, all in one night. Ethan tried to think of a way to comfort her. But how do you console someone who's just lost everything? Then Genevieve spoke, interrupting his thoughts- "God's the one that's gonna have to answer to me." Then before Ethan could react she stood and sprinted toward her still-burning home. "Genevieve!" He yelled, running after her. By the time he caught up she was climbing the house's crumbling staircase, with one of the greek soldiers trying to pull her back down. Ethan aimed his rifle and fired. The Yankee's blue outfit stained with red blood, and his body fell, releasing Genevieve's arm. He ran up to her, but before he could get her attention, another chorus of gunshots rang through the house. Horrible pain ripped through his stomach, and I collapsed. I saw Genevieve kneel beside me, and shout something to Ivy; the old woman must have followed me. "I love you. And I would've married you no matter what your family thought." I said quietly. "Don't say that, Ethan Carter Wate. Don't say that like you're going to die. You're gonna be just fine. Just fine." Genevieve said. I didn't believe her. I looked into her bright green eyes one last time. And then they faded. Everything faded. I was standing on the blanks of a black river in a dark cavern. The Styx. Pluto's realm. But then- that faded. Ethan was back in his body, back at Genevieve's side. How... He looked up at Genevieve. Had she brought him back somehow? "Ethan!" she said, meeting his eyes. Her eyes- Ethan frowned. Her formerly bright green eyes had turned vibrant gold, with slitted pupils, like a cat's. He felt his strength draining out of him again. No time for scrutinizing changes in eye color. "I never believed your daddy when he said it was impossible for us to be together. We would have found a way. I love you, Genevieve." The world faded again. ---- *Note: some dialogue is directly from the novel Beautiful Creatures.* Category:Fanfiction Category:Nickystellar Category:Crossovers Category:The Roman Eagle Wiki Fanfiction Contest